Here at the Whole Life Challenge, yoga is one of our go-to mobility practices. To share its benefits with you, we’ve partnered with MyYogaWorks, as their approach to health and well-being aligns so well with ours. Together, we’ve created a series of follow-along videos to address a different body part for each week of the Challenge.
Who’s got short hamstrings? Raise your hand!
Yeah, I’m with you. I’m raising my hand here, too. My hamstrings have been chronically tight my whole life. So I was excited to see this video from instructor Sarah Ezrin is all about opening up this problem area.
When most of us say “hamstrings,” what we’re actually referring to is a group of three muscles on the back of our thighs. The official names for these muscles are semitendinosus, semimembranosus, and biceps femoris. If you sit all day at a desk and/or spend a fair amount of time driving, then you are especially at risk for these muscles getting tight. This can lead to back pain, hamstring strains, and less-than-optimal performance in the gym.
Do this sequence at your own level. Like everything else we try to take on in our lives, mobility work is about small changes and consistency. So don’t expect perfection. I can’t do what Belle can in this video, either! But over time, taking the ten minutes to do this sequence regularly can result in lifelong change.
As yoga gained popularity in the U.S., the demand for well-trained yoga teachers began to grow. With the help and inspiration of senior teachers Chuck Miller and Lisa Walford, Maty created the world-renowned YogaWorks Teacher Training Program in 1990. Based on direct teachings from Indian yoga masters, this program has formed and guided today’s yoga leaders, including Seane Corn, Shiva Rea, Annie Carpenter, Natasha Rizopolus, Vinnie Marino, Kathryn Budig, and many more.
